Hangartner Residence

Testimonial:

“We worked with Mark Christopher on our residential project which was completed 5 years ago. As much as we loved the house in every way when we first moved in, five years later we only appreciate his skill even more. I can’t count the number of times strangers drive up and go out of their way to tell us how much they love the house, and its not uncommon to find people standing out front with their own builder or architect talking about the house. We love it even more as time passes because it lives beautifully, and seems to adapt to our needs as our kids grow up. Mark took the time to understand our family dynamics and has designed the space so beautifully that we use every square inch of it. Finally, Mark is always a pleasure to work with, we thoroughly enjoyed the experience.”

- Jon Hangartner

“I have had the pleasure of working with Sanctuary on several beautiful homes. Mark’s attention to detail always raises the bar for the landscape architecture and the value he places on client and consultant collaboration is proved on every project.”

The natural life cycle of older neighborhoods, particularly those whose housing stock represents what was the norm in a considerably more modest time, offers particular challenges for owners and architects. In this case, while the owner’s need for space was considerably beyond that provided by the existing home, the neighborhood has a natural upper limit suggested, not just by ordinance, but by the suitability of scale.

A new home in a mature neighborhood bears responsibility to form a transition between its neighboring structures and what trends might suggest could be built. This home, while achieving its owner’s dreams, fits carefully alongside both large scale homes on one side and small scale homes on the other. The forms are segmented, roof lines varied, and details sized to diminish, not aggrandize, scale.

Our client yearned for a comfortable, unpretentious and modest home with the look of any number of classic american homes found in mature neighborhoods across the country. We chose a craftsman style, but with a tropical flavor, an expression of our client’s attraction to places visited on their travels and evocative of the illusion of just being on vacation every day of one’s live.

Every inch of this property has been optimized. Nothing goes unused. No space is wasted. Spaces serve multiple uses. The carport, when absent a car, forms a poolside cabaña. Decks and patios are furnished with fire rings, fire places, and sheltered by trellises. Light wells illuminate subterranean space.

Nor is space wasted on an infrequently used living room, a dedicated media room, or the usual inappropriately sized entry. Spaces borrow volume from each other through wide openings, punctuated by beams, decorative casings, and posts, while variations in ceiling treatments help each space maintain its own distinct feel.